Newbie who might be screwed

I have recently been having some serious issues with spyware and now it is to the point where I can not even work on the problem because my computer continuously keeps on shutting down. I used Bazooka to do a scan and it says I have:

Cydoor
DyFuCa
WareOut
PointsManager
Twaintech.mxtarget
Windows AdControl
Winadtools
Windupdates

So I am not sure if there is much I can do about this at this point since my computer wont stay on long enough for me to do anything, should I just try to save my important files and give up? Thanks for any info.

Jeff

Hi Jeff
From what you have said, there may be a couple of things you can do:
1. When you say you used Bazooka to do a scan (assuming that is a type of spyware removal tool), did you get an option to remove the spyware? If you did and it is still coming up as present, have you tried another spyware removal tool? A good one I can recommend is Spy Sweeper (www.webroot.com)
2. When you say your computer won't stay up long enough for you to do anything, do you mean that it is going into auto shutdown? Or is it just rebooting by itself. I ask because this may not be caused by spyware, I have seen this behaviour with some hardware faults. Something to consider possibly. Have you tried booting into safemode (assuming you are running Windows)? Or have you tried disconnecting your internet connection and rebooting? Both of those options may get you up for long enough to get your data off the machine at least
3. Depending upon how valuable your data is, you can try to remove your hard drive and hook it up as a secondary drive in another computer. Of course, depending upon how much you want your data back. You will also need to be careful not to contaminate the second computer at the same time

Those are at least some options for you. I would recommend you rebuild your operating system at the end of all this if you can, even if you do manage to remove all those traces, you can introduce instability into your system even with a clean bill of health.

Hope this helps

I would just back up and re install.

Start into safe mode, run stinger (anti virus) adaware (anti adware) and then hop on over to housecall.trendmicro.com and run their scan.

if you computer is shutting down and showing you a little box that counts down from 30 as soon as you see it got to start-->run --> cmd --> and in the command prompt type in shutdown -a

this will abort the shutdown and should prevent that window from comming up again atleast until you reboot. There are a few well known viruses that run the shutdown command.

i had a simmilar problem but i used microsoft antispyware and it really helps. my computer is just fine

Quote:

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i had a simmilar problem but i used microsoft antispyware and it really helps. my computer is just fine

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MS anti spyware is awesome....except for the whole NOT DELETING CLARIA and missing numerous other not so good programs.

A little off topic but like Info Tech Geek said what i would do is backup ever thing you need reinstall and then make an image of your system after you have done that so if your system ever really dose become totaly screwed you can just put your image on and be good to go. a good program for this is g4u.

Follow the advice from TechGrunt, XTC46, and elfguy, What you have listed isnt to hard to clean when the correct tools are being used..
McAfee Stinger is starting to get a bit dated..LAst update is early MAy.. I have prefered to use Sysclean from Trend Micro... get the package here http://uk.trendmicro-europe.com/ente...lutionId=18010

Bit of a worry with MS and their pending Purchase of Claria... Yetch


BTW: Clean install is not always the easiest answer, it isnt always the best answer.. IT IS AN OPTION.. and it is an option if there are a lot more problems than just a few parasites and worm. IT ISNT an option if you dont have the means to backup your information, You may not have access to the information to complete the exercise correctlyOr they may not have the time needed to get the system fully operational. IF your going to give this as a Solution.. Be prepared to backup what your saying and Give the person the OPTIONS Other wise alu\youve just said is .. USE LINUX

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Appealing to gearheads who don't mind getting their hands dirty, Bazooka scans for spyware and offers detailed instructions on how to remove it. However, many people will prefer an application that removes spyware for them. Installation is simple and the application includes an automatic updater for its spyware-reference database. After the lightning-quick scan, you must be online to access instructions on how to remove any spyware that is found. We would like to see an option for downloading all spyware-removal instructions at one time, making a trip online unnecessary. Online-access issues aside, Bazooka Adware and Spyware Scanner provides a nice, simple solution to keeping those nasty programs out of your hard drive.

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XTX46 is quite right about running all your anti-malware stuff in safe mode

Undies~ makes a good point too. The reformat and reinstall option is one you consider early on if you are running a repair shop, and have to weigh up how much time things will take, because you are going to have to bill the customer for that time. I generally recommend that private individuals take the time to try to clean and repair their computer, as it is a good learning process.

In addition unplug your internet connection before booting into normal mode and see if that helps. Quite a lot of malware will not launch if it cannot detect an internet connection.

Another thing I would consider before reformat and reinstall is making a boot CD with all the anti-malware tools on it, booting from the CD and running them. If you don't boot from your hard drive, you won't start the malware that is on it?

Good luck :)

I wished I had the answer, or a way to fix this problem for ya, tho if I did id be as rich as Billy” big bucks” Gates! However, this is the real world and like 1000's before ya and god knows how many to experience this delight, cos trust me ive been there more times than I care to admit!

I'm a million miles away from being a so called expert in this subject, and please correct me if I’m wrong in saying this, but if this problem is being caused by a virus or worm, call it what you will, by backing up etc any files software to disk, then reformat and install from scratch, will do nothing more than give ya a few weeks maybe months if ya lucky use of your comp, before your back to square one! Cos id bet my balls on that the files etc saved prior to the reformat will be infected, and you’re going to install time and time again!

The reason I say this is very simple, I’ve done it.
So for what its worth, which aint a lot I’m sure I hear you all cry, but the following quote must be the best bit of free advice you will ever hear!

Quote: "I generally recommend that private individuals take the time to try to clean and repair their computer, as it is a good learning process".

Sadly the damage has already been done, so why not use it to your advantage and try to find the real cause of problem! Let’s face it your got sod all to lose!
Apart from a bit time, and of course ya Sanity!

P.S Never rely on just one "anti-virus/spyware scanner" there are loads on the market to choose from, sadly none of them can stop every known/unknown virus etc out there, if such a bit of software was available we would all be using it. On the plus side there are some very good online scans available, like Mcafee, MS antispyware, Panda etc, best of all there Free!

You might also check out:

http://www.ewido.net/en/

It is a good multipurpose scanner. There is a 14 day trial with the interactive protection running, but you can update and use it as a passive scanner after that for free.

http://www.emisodt.com/en/software/free/

A-Squared. A free scanner that specialises in trojans and diallers.

Remember that you always have reformatting and reinstallation as a last option.

You might also get a copy of Hijack This! and save the log file and post it here. Don't do anything until someone has looked at it for you :)

i dont know much about this topic even though i had the same problem 6 months back when i got the help of a professional who formatted the entire HD. i could not do this silly procedure since the compu wont even stay on for long...
i dont know how he did it

i can only suggest-
1. going to dos or CLI
2. using the task manager to shut down processes u think are suspicious.
3. hope for the best

i learned a valuable experience during my problem--
when running an application say xyz, the compu always shutted down at the same precise moment when it reached a specific stage.
multiple runnings of xyz and hoping for the best didnt work--
COZ THE COMPUTER WAS NOT SHUTTING AT RANDOM, IT WAS BEING INSTRUCTED AT THE PRECISE MOMENT OF THAT EXECUTABLE CODE DURING THE EFFECTS OF THE VIRUS OR SPYWARE.

THUS IF COMPU SHUTTS OFF IN ONE SEQUENCE, LEAVE ALL HOPE THIS SEQUENCE MAY HELP U

GOD BLESS U

Thanks everyone for all your useful tips, but the continuous problems with the computer shutting down made me quite impatient so I backed up my computer and began reinstalling but the horrible part about it is that the process of reinstalling keeps on becoming interrupted by the computer shutting down, so what do you think is this a hardware problem I am dealing with or did the virus really get my computer that badly, because either way now I cant get into my computer anymore.

Hi Jeff,

Did you reformat your drive first?

How many times does the BIOS beep when you power up?

Can you get into the BIOS setup?

Does anything appear on the screen?

For hardware the favourites are:

1. Power Supply Unit
2. RAM
3. Video Card
4. Hard Drive
5. Heat

Your answers will help us suggest the best troubleshooting path :)

Have you rebooted your system in safe mode without the networking resources?, I once had a similar issue. So I started my PC like I normally would and check the processes that were running...although that task itself took forever, but once it appeared I wrote down all the processes that didnt seem right to me. After I restarted my PC in safe mode without the Networking resources and begain to physically purge my pc by checking the Regisrty and search the whole registry with the processes that I wrote down. And that task right there let me know alot of things, like if the process actually belongs, and if the process didnt belong where it was located on my PC, so I could manually delete it. If that doesnt help you, there is always "Nuke - n- Pave" which means killing your whole system.

Hi

Just a quick thought. Some fooware (===malware/adware/spyware and just cr*pware) exploits RPC and creates a fault which causes most computers to automatically shutdown. The answer is to change how RPC acts on your system when it detects a problem(i.e. change it from shutdown and reboot to do nothing in your system settings). I agree that disconnecting from the net and booting in safe mode is a good thing.

Once the operating system is stable enough to work on, back up your data. Restore it onto a different machine and virus check etc it at the same time.

Wipe the disk and rebuild your operating system. Patch it up to date including all viruses etc signatures and antivirus software. Make sure you have a decent firewall up and running before you connect to the Internet to download updates etc.

I'm guessing you don't have a great deal of value on your system since you're going down the reformat route already. That's probably to your advantage. A lot of people like the fight against the spyware to recover the machine and remove the malware. It's often quicker and easier to reformat and reinstall.

As nihil has mentioned you should reformat the hard drive first. If you've got friends nearby with internet access go round and ask to se their machine. If you know the manufacturer of your hard drive go to their website and download the tools for your drive. They'll format the drive a whole lot quicker than windows if you've got a big one :)

Also download a firewall (Zonelabs etc) and the more popular anti-spyware /AV programs.
Some of them have been mentioned already and I can't be arsed writing them out again, look around you'll get them.

Reformat your machine and reinstall windows. DONT GO ONLINE YET!!

Install the firewall and the spyware tools.
Now go online and get your patches and update the antispyware.

You should now have a lovely clean system better protected than you were before.


Not got friends nearby?
REformat/reinstall go online and download a firewall first.
Cross yer fingers, pray to your deity, sacrifice a goat whatever just hope you get it down before you get scanned and compromised.

The going rate is 12 minutes for an unpatched machine. I've seen it happen in 2.

Thanks for all the advice again, the problem is I backed up all my important files onto an external hard drive and started the system restore. Now, unless my lack of computering skills serves me wrong, I can not access the system anymore, actually, without the system restore disc the only reading I get is "hard drive not accessible" or something like that when I start up. And I just became aware of an issue with Sony Vaios and their power supply which is attached to the motherboard, it has become enough of an issue that people have filed a class action suit, I am not quite sure if this is my problem yet, but it sounds familiar. And Sony refuses to check for without me paying. So I am not sure if there is much more I can do. Let me know, thanks...

I'm sorry I don't quite understand your problem as it is now. Can you try to explain what you have done now and what errors you are getting on screen.

I think what you are saying is...correct me if I'm wrong:

You backed up you files externally so they are safe :)
You've used the supplied Sony restore cd to reinstall your system.
You now get an error saying your hard disk is not accessible.

Did the computer sucessfully reinstall the operating system?
Or did the reinstall fail with the error you have described?

Have you tried to reformat the hard disk prior to the reinstall or does the restore CD refomat as part of its recovery process?

If your machine was running before, even with spyware, it's unlikely it would pop just because you have ran the restore CD (not impossible, just unlikely). More probably the reinstall has gone bit wrong somewhere.

be safe reformat and reinstall.

So Your problem was a System a PC Power down.. not a windows shutting down problem..

That is.. the system woould just power OFF instantly.. Seems many of us have missedthe shutting down thing..

IF it is a clean Off situation.. happening anytime be it during the "Sony System Restore" or if useing a "Live CD" OS get the PSU checked..
If the system is OK with a "Live CD" or ok during a "Non Network" Installation.. Doing the complete installation with NO NETWORK CONNECTIONS..with no problems and is only happening when the network is connected.. and is a Shutdown WITH a warning.. You must be installing with XP SP1 or earlier.. Install SP2 before connecting to the net without a fire wall..

Seems we went off on our little paths without asking you to clarify what you meant by the shutdown..

Good point Undies~

I have come across a few situations where devices have powered down rather than shutdown. That is it was a hardware termination not a software one.

What it turned out to be was the I/O switch was deteriorating or was defective. It is spring loaded with a little hook to hold it in place. After a certain time, not particularly long but not consistent this would trip and power the device off.

Just a wild possibility?

:D